Direct visualization of molecularly thin lubricant films on magnetic disks with a digitally enhanced ellipsometric microscope

An ellipsometry-based direct visualization method for molecularly thin lubricant films on magnetic disks is presented. The visualization of molecularly thin film is useful in investigating the replenishment and retention characteristics of thin lubricant films. Ellipsometric information of a sample surface is converted into a dark-bright contrast image that is then directly visualized with a charge coupled device camera. By combining optical and digital image processing techniques, weak contrasts can be enhanced and noise intensity reduced. The authors' method can provide direct visualization of thin lubricant films in the order of 1 nm.